In early 2000 however, things became more pressing. U, via a translator, started to call me almost daily with requests of the utmost urgency. Most importantly, he needed one specific movie: Katharina die Grosse, a 1995 German film on German-born Russian Czaress Catherine the Great, directed by Marvin J. Chomsky. That film, depicting the life of the woman ruling Russia from 1762 to 1796 was of the highest importance, U told me and he would pay any price for it – no matter how much. Of course, he had already asked the guys at the movie theater about this film and they had told him “not available” and declined any further research activities on it. They also told me that U’s search now included a new filmic topic: movies about old European royal courts. “Maybe the Great Leader back home wants to learn how to be a real king now.” one of the theater guys joked.
At the same time, a new “diplomat” had settled in at the compound. He was in his late 20s, seemed to be very smart and his German was nearly flawless. From now on, he was U’s main film deal translator. The new arrival was no diplomat in the classic sense however. Kim Han-chol was a businessman trading in garments. His job was to coordinate a special garment deal: fabric made in South Korea was shipped to the port of Nampo, North Korea, to be tailored there into shirts and then shipped to Germany. Kim Han-chol’s duty was to sell those clothes to German retail chains like Adler and C&A. At the moment he managed his business out of the North Korean diplomatic mission but soon, he would open his own offices in the western German city of Fulda. A small and rather boring town but very far away from anything North Korean… Kim seemed to look forward to that.
“Where do you want to eat?” U asked me at my next visit to the North Korean mission, having come down straight from his office together with Kim once the woman watching the gate had spotted me.
“Something Korean. Is there any good Korean place in Berlin?”
“No”, U said, “but the Chinese are our neighbors. What about Chinese?”
“What about the Kimchi restaurant on Adenauerplatz?” I asked, knowing that that offered really good food, including even Pyongyang-style cold noodles.
“No, we can’t go there.” U answered without further elaborating. Of course, that was a place run by South Koreans and having mainly South Korean customers and he didn’t want to go there.
“Alright, the Chinese restaurant then…” I said. We entered U’s 1980s brown Opel sedan and drove around the corner – walking there would have taken about just as long. At the Chinese restaurant, Kim asked the waitress for the table the furthest removed from any other customers, we ordered dinner and the negotiations could start.
“Any progress with Katharina die Grosse?” U asked.
“Yes.” I replied, “I spoke to the boss of UFA Productions in Babelsberg, the company that produced the movie. He told me that he had already spoken to you about the film and that he had told you that it is not available.”
“Yes, I spoke to him“, U said, “but we need the film. That is why we ask you to get it for us.”
“Well, he said that the film was shot in 35mm but that it was a TV production and that they have not made a 35mm print of the film to be used in theatrical screenings.”
U smiled: “That is no problem. We would pay for that print.”
“I mean, do you want to buy or rent the film? I always thought you wanted to rent it?” I answered, a bit surprised.
“Either way, we need the film.” U said.
“But that’s not all the boss of UFA told me” I replied, “UFA has never made a sound mix and final editing for a 35mm theatrical release of the movie – they just did it for the TV version. They can’t just strike a film print from what they got right now…”
“We will pay for that.” U said confidently.
“You sure?” I said, “That is going to go into the tens of thousands of Dollars.”
“Don’t worry, we pay for it.” U said. “Just go on getting the film for us.”
After finishing the rather mediocre meal of shark fin soup and roast duck, U wiped his mouth with a napkin while I lit a cigarette. He grabbed my cigarette pack and asked via Kim: “You always smoke them? I’ve seen you smoking them all the time.”
“Yes, please take one.” I replied.
“Oh, no I don’t smoke. Kim might try. But we have access to a special diplomat store and can get cigarettes cheaply. I can get you some cigarettes cheaply.”
“Filterless Gauloises? I don’t think these ones are for sale there.” I said.
“Well, can I have the empty pack of your cigarettes? I will certainly get you some – if you want me to.”
“If you want to try, go ahead. I would buy some from you.” He took the cigarettes out of the package, placed them on the table and pocketed the package.
From a large Manila envelope, U now produced a sheet with a type-written list of about 15 films. Most were Japanese titles spelled out in Latin letters. “You know, I love films and I know, you have good contacts to Japan.” he said, “I need these films.”
I looked at the list. “Never heard of any of these titles. Will check for it. But might be that they are only available in Japan.”
“So what?”
“Well, that would mean that they are only in Japanese and I would have to fly them in from there.”
“No problem,” U brushed my concerns away, “My wife speaks Japanese, she can translate.”
“But that is also gonna be a couple of thousands of Dollars in rent and shipping, provided I do get the films. You sure you can afford that? Just for a screening with your wife?”
“Oh, no, a few other friends will join the screening, don’t worry. Money is no problem. Want another beer? I pay for everything.”
He pulled yet another paper from the Manila envelope, a program schedule of a South Korean film series at the Babylon theater in Berlin this time. Several films, including Christmas in August by Hur Jin-ho, were marked. “We also need the films marked here” he said, “You think, you can get us prints?”
“Well, I will tell you which subway to take to go to the Babylon theater and you watch them there. Would be easier.”
“No, we want to see them in our embassy. That is more convenient.”
“Okay, give me the list. Will see what I can do.”
“There is something else”, U continued. “The Berlin Film Festival is coming up and the South Korean film Shiri will play at the film market. Can you get us a print of that?”
“I can get you a ticket for the market screening, if you want. See it in a big theater.” “No, we want to see it at our place. Please try your best.”
